1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for and a method of reading radiation image information recorded in a stimulable phosphor panel that is stored in a cassette, thereafter erasing remaining radiation image information from the stimulable phosphor panel, and discharging the stimulable phosphor panel.
2. Description of the Related Art
There has heretofore been known a radiation image information reading and erasing apparatus employing a stimulable phosphor panel which, when exposed to an applied radiation, stores part of the energy of the radiation, and, when subsequently exposed to applied stimulating rays such as visible light, emits light in proportion to the stored energy of the radiation.
The radiation image information reading and erasing apparatus includes a cassette loader for loading a plurality of cassettes each storing a stimulable phosphor panel which records therein radiation image information of a subject such as a human body, a reading unit for applying stimulating light to the stimulable phosphor panel removed from one of the cassettes to read the radiation image information from the stimulable phosphor panel, an erasing unit for applying erasing light to the stimulable phosphor panel from which the radiation image information has been read to erase remaining radiation image information from the stimulable phosphor panel, and a cassette discharger for discharging the stimulable phosphor panel stored in the cassette after the remaining radiation image information has been erased from the stimulable phosphor panel. For details, reference should be made to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-156716 and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-43565, for example.
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-156716, after a cassette is introduced from a cassette insertion slot into the apparatus, a stimulable phosphor sheet is separated from the cassette, and supplied to a reading unit and an erasing unit. After recorded radiation image information is read from the stimulable phosphor sheet by the reading unit and remaining radiation image information is erased from the stimulable phosphor sheet by the erasing unit, the stimulable phosphor sheet is put back into the cassette, which is then discharged from a cassette discharge slot.
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-43565, one of a plurality of stacked cassettes loaded in a receiving station is fed substantially horizontally to a separating station, and a board is separated from a lid of the cassette and supplied to a scanning station and an erasing station. After the board is processed in the scanning station and the erasing station, the board and the lid are combined together in an assembling station, and discharged as the cassette to an output station.
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-156716, only one cassette can be positioned in each of the cassette insertion slot and the cassette discharge slot. If a plurality of cassettes are to be successively processed, then the operator is required to keep the cassettes in the vicinity of the radiation image information reading and erasing apparatus. After having confirmed that a cassette is introduced into the apparatus, the operator needs to insert the next cassette into the cassette insertion slot, and also needs to remove the cassette discharged from the cassette discharge slot. Consequently, when a large number of cassettes are successively processed, the operator is required to attend the radiation image information reading and erasing apparatus for a long period of time.
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 6-43565, a plurality of cassettes are stocked only in the receiving station and the output station, and the cassettes can be processed only one at a time in the apparatus.